What is a BKR registration?
The Central Credit Registration Office (Bureau Krediet Registratie (‘the BKR’) keeps records of private parties that have taken out credit (i.e. loans). A ‘private party’ means a consumer, as well as any natural person acting in the course of a business or profession. If you have a loan registered with the BKR, this is referred to as a ‘BKR registration’. If you apply to us for a loan, we are required to check whether you are registered with the BKR. That way we can have a better idea of whether you can afford to repay the loan. If you do take out a loan, we are often required to register the loan with the BKR. There are two types of BKR registration: a positive registration and a negative one.
Positive registrations
A positive registration is a notification to the BKR of the fact that you have taken out a loan. Depending on the type of loan (and, where relevant, its duration), the registration may also contain information as to the amount of the loan. The products that we notify the BKR about are divided into consumer products and products for natural persons acting in the course of a business or profession.
Consumer - The amount loaned is registered with the BKR in respect of the following products:
- Extra Woninghypotheek (Extra Residential Mortgage)
- Vastgoedhypotheek (Real Estate Mortgage)
Natural persons acting in the course of a business or profession - The amount loaned is not registered with the BKR in respect of the following products:
- Professioneel Vastgoedlening (Property Investment Loan)
- Zakelijke Vastgoedlening (Corporate Property Investment Loan)
- Rekening-courantfaciliteit (Overdraft Facility)
Negative registrations
In respect of all of the above products you will be given a negative BKR registration if you fall into arrears with repayments. If you have a consumer Woninghypotheek (Residential Mortgage), even though the loan will not be registered with the BKR, you will still receive a negative BKR registration if you fall into arrears with repayments.
You will always receive a warning before any negative BKR registration is recorded against you. A negative registration may cause problems when you apply for a new loan or purchase property, since the bank takes account of a negative registration when deciding whether to agree to a loan or credit application. It is therefore important to avoid any negative BKR registration.
Finally
You can request a summary of any BKR registrations bkr.nl Opens in a new window. The rules governing BKR registrations may change. It is therefore possible that loans that don’t currently require registration may need to be registered in the future.